In the early 60s, the men in an African business which catches game for zoos find themselves unexpectedly beset with romantic issues.Hatari! is a colourful, spectacular, action-packed John Wayne vehicle, directed by Howard Hawkes. The action is all animal capture, mostly with vehicles chasing fast-running game while Wayne sits in a seat over a front wheel holding a pole with a rope noose at the end of it. When the animals are actually caught, the shots are from the rear, so that you can't see the face of the man in Wayne's seat and clothing.Parallel with the action are two romances. The main one features Wayne and Elsa Martinelli, the other features the tragic young French actress Michelle Girardon and, yes, Red Buttons. Both stretch the imagination somewhat, but the film is escapist nonsense, so what does it matter?

I first saw Hatari as a 7 year old when my Mum took me to the Paramount Cinema on George Street Sydney to see it and I reckon I knew even then that there was something special about it. In subsequent viewings, I was able to describe what it was. It was the naturalness of the story and the actors. Scripting didn't seem required as the chemistry between the principles did the trick. See this movie. Own a copy as I do and treasure it as a time capsule to an era when Hollywood could allow the larger than life stars like Wayne, the NATURAL landscapes and the absence of foul lingo to entertain.

John Wayne set against an azure African sky, with the gentle thrum of Henry Mancini's score for accompaniment in search of wild animals to capture in the veldt. What else do you need?Not much, if you are director Henry Hawks. Which is what you get in this picturesque travelogue entertainment.Wayne is Sean Mercer, whose business is collecting dangerous Tanzanian wildlife for zoos. Already behind schedule, he is thrown for a loop when a Swiss zoo which buys many of his animals sends a beautiful photographer, Anna Maria D'Alessandro, a. k. a. "Dallas" (Elsa Martinelli), to tag along."Rhino, elephants, buffalo, and a greenhorn," huffs Sean.As other reviewers here rightly note, "Hatari!" is another in the Hawks mold featuring a group of adventure-ready characters coming together to handle adversity. Truth is, there's not much adversity here. Of course, the animal-catching is dangerous, something established right at the start when we see Sean's deputy Little Wolf (Bruce Cabot) get his leg gored by an angry rhino. But for the most part, this is a light entertainment with little story to interfere with the ambiance.Wayne is in his Grand Old Man mode here, leading a game supporting cast that includes Hardy Krüger and Red Buttons, who amiably vie for the attentions of young Brandy (Michèle Girardon), the daughter of Sean's former boss.Wayne gets off some choice one-liners. When a Frenchman nicknamed Chips (Gérard Blain) and Krüger's character come to blows, Sean tries to settle things peacefully. "You can't whip us all," he tells Chips."I can try!" Chips replies."Well, bring your lunch!"Not sure what that means, but it is a fun scene. There are many fun scenes in "Hatari!" In fact, the whole film is a collection of fun scenes cobbled together with long interludes of Mancini music, wisecracks, smoking, and drinking. I wouldn't recommend this 150-minute- plus film to just anyone, even with the very real-looking capture scenes to keep your attention. It just ambles along in its unhurried way, as if Hawks thought "Rio Bravo" was too quick breaking up the chatter with shoot-outs. Wayne only once fires a weapon, and that is to warn off a mother elephant who gets too close to Dallas and three orphan elephant calves who have adopted her.The cinematography by Russell Harlan got a deserved Oscar nomination; he was earning his keep even when Leigh Brackett's script devolves into an inane soap opera in the bush. Will Buttons' annoying Pockets character catch Brandy, or 500 monkeys in a tree? Will he know what to do with either if he does? The film doesn't seem to, and throws everything up in the air at the end with a merry chase involving a suddenly despondent Dallas that will please the ten-year-olds who like shots of elephants running through a hotel lobby.But since I am a Wayne fan, and enjoy beautiful scenery and entrancing music, I'm not much for complaining. Just a warning that this is more a jaunt than anything meaty, and that both patience and a fast-forward button may well come in handy.

This movie has it all:1.) adventure;2.) wild animals;3.) beautiful settings;4.) beautiful ladies;5.) a great story;6.) a great cast lead by John Wayne;7.) a great director, Howard Hawks;8.) a great musical score by Henry Mancini that 'accidentally/incidentally' spawned the #1 worldwide hit-song..."Baby Elephant Walk;"9.) a lot of comedy;10.) and, a lot of enjoyment by whomever sees this movie! :) John Wayne is the tough but fair leader he always is. Hardy Kruger and Bruce Cabot are his tough right-and-left-hand men. Gerard Blain is the 'new-guy' who makes a great impression. Red Buttons is the helpful and innovative guy who is also the comic-relief. AND...Elsa Martinelli and Michèle Girardon are the beautiful ladies who complete this African safari adventure.Why would someone so young and beautiful kill herself!?!? RIP Michèle Girardon.I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this movie to anyone from the ages of two to 122! :)